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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. firm — decided
  3. hand — in cards
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. bark — to shout
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. last — finally
  8. hand — help
  9. firm — steady
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — final
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to click
  16. squash — to crush
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. firm — a company
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. squash — the sport
  24. dip — to sink

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com